Microsoft’s head of Windows Phone Andy Lees recently said he was flattered by parts of Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich that appear to mimic features of Windows Phone 7.5 (Mango). “It’s always flattering when someone starts copying you ,” Lees told CNETAsia. Perhaps one of the most noticeable similarities is Android’s new ‘People’ feature, which provides a snapshot of any contact’s social network status — it is nearly identical to what Windows Phone 7.5 offers with “People Hub.” Read on for more. More →

The sleek, slender smartphone pictured above is absolutely not Apple’s next-generation iPhone. It is entirely possible, however, that the iPhone 5 could feature the same design. Images of a fake iPhone 5 were published this past weekend by gizchina.com, and they show a strikingly thin 7mm-thick handset that has all the makings of an Apple design. The device itself is certainly not built of the same high-quality materials or components Apple would use, but as has been noted by several sites that picked up the story, it is possible — perhaps even likely — that the above clone is based on Apple’s actual iPhone 5 design. Manufacturing has probably begun at this point, and employees of Apple’s manufacturing partners leak parts and information left and right. So, a Chinese iPhone clone maker obtaining Apple’s designs (or even a working device) and building a clone is hardly far fetched. The design also looks like it would fit perfectly into some of the iPhone 5 cases that have surfaced, though that doesn’t necessarily say much. Nothing is certain until Apple makes it official, but this could very well be the design we see Apple executives showing off when the iPhone 5 is finally unveiled in the coming months. More →

A company called Cellrderm has taken Microsoft to court over its Windows Phone “Really” advertisements, according to Adweek. Cellrderm, a gag company that creates commercials for a fake Cellrderm “cell abuse aid” product, argues that it owns the copyrights to the creative content used in Microsoft’s ads and that Microsoft copied its work in its “Bedroom” and “Bathroom” commercials. You’ve probably seen the ads on TV: in one, a man is too busy on his phone to pay attention to his wife in the bedroom. In another, an executive drops his phone in the urinal and reaches to pick it up. “The Microsoft commercials copy both the sequence of events and the character interplay found in the Cellrderm commercials,” the company wrote in the lawsuit, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. “The Microsoft commercials also copy other copyrightable expression, including but not limited to clothing, gestures, character appearance, camera angles, and other visual elements from the Cellrderm Commercials.” Cellrderm is seeking damages and has asked the court to block Microsoft from airing the commercials. More →

Speaking at the Japanese Microsoft Developers Forum, Microsoft’s CEO confirmed that the next Windows Phone update, codenamed Mango, will add “over 500 new features” to the mobile operating system. The Redmond based company has an event scheduled for Tuesday, May 24th in New York City, during which it will unveil the new update (again) and discuss its features in greater detail. Earlier this month we heard rumors that the update will deliver Bing Audio, Bing Vision, turn-by-turn navigation in Bing Maps, a new native podcast player, speech recognition, and more. We’ll be reporting live on the update tomorrow morning at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time. Hit the jump for a quick video clip of Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer discussing Mango.

Owners of HTC’s Surround device definitely were not feeling the Windows Phone love a few weeks back. It’s two AT&T counterparts — the Samsung Focus and LG Quantum — were receiving the highly-anticipated NoDo update, but the Surround was still left in limbo. Well Surround owners, your day hath cometh. Owners of the giant-speaker bearing handset are reporting that the aforementioned update is beginning to be pushed to their smartphones. The code bump is still listed as “scheduling” on Microsoft’s official update website, although from the screen shot above you can see it seems to have moved to the “delivering update” phase. If you’re a Surround owner, plug your handset into your computer and enjoy!

Lionel Menchaca, a writer on Dell’s Direct2Dell blog, confirmed via his Twitter account that Dell will begin rolling out the “NoDo” Windows Phone update to Venue Pro owners today. NoDo will add copy/paste functionality to the Venue Pro, and user should also see speed improvements within applications — thanks to some smaller performance tweaks. Menchaca said that Dell will update its Direct2Dell blog later today with a post about the NoDo rollout. Venue Pro owners, let us know if you see the update. More →

According to several, leaked internal screen shots obtained by TmoNews, the highly-anticipated NoDo Windows Phone 7 update could begin rolling out to owners of the T-Mobile HTC HD7 smartphone as soon as Today. Users should start seeing a pop-up notification alerting them of the update, at which point they’ll need to connect their phones to a computer and install the update through Microsoft’s Zune Player software. NoDo will bring copy/paste functionality, improvements to Wi-Fi and the camera, along with several speed and performance enhancements. For now this is just a rumor, but it’s entirely possible given that Microsoft began pushing out the NoDo update in Europe last week. We’ll be sure to keep you updated if we hear more on NoDo being deployed to the HD7 today. More →

After our initial caffeine-fueled lap around the Orange County Connection Center, we made the rounds one more time to collect some videos for your scrutiny. One device on our hit-list was the HTC HD7S, AT&T’s third Windows Phone 7 smartphone. If you’re a Windows Phone fan, this one is sure to be up your alley. Its 4.3-inch screen was bright and its build was solid thanks to thick plastic and metal accents. We do feel the design is getting a bit stale, though, given that it has a body that’s very similar to the HD7 on T-Mobile and the EVO 4G on Sprint. It even features the same kickstand, which is good if you want to watch movies and set the device in landscape mode on your desk, but it also adds some bulk. The HD7S would be our top choice of Windows Phone 7 devices on AT&T too, because it has the latest NoDo update that includes copy/paste functionality. Hit the jump to see what the HD7S is all about, and check out our photo gallery as well.

Microsoft on Tuesday confirmed that its first major update for the Windows Phone 7 platform is now being rolled out to users. Internally referred to as “NoDo” — which is said to be short for “No Donuts,” mocking Google’s first Android update dubbed “Donut” — the update adds much sought after copy/paste functionality to Windows Phone 7 devices. It also adds support for “tombstoning,” improves Marketplace searches, fixes a variety of bugs and adds support for CDMA devices. “We’ve begun to gradually roll out the Copy & Paste update, starting small with open market phone customers in parts of Europe this week,” a Microsoft spokesperson told BGR in an email, adding, “More to come.” Sprint’s HTC Arrive was the first device to feature NoDo when it launched this past Sunday with the update pre-installed. Microsoft has not yet detailed its plans for a U.S. rollout, so we are unsure when other U.S. carrier-branded devices will begin receiving NoDo. Users will receive notifications on their devices once the update becomes available, and they will need to connect to PCs in order to install it.

We just whizzed by HTC’s booth at CTIA in Orlando to check out the HD7S, AT&T’s latest Windows Phone 7 monster. The HD7S rocks a large, beautiful 4.3-inch display that looked amazing, even under the blinding lights of the show floor. If you’ve handled a 4.3-inch HTC handset before, you know exactly what to expect from the HD7S. We couldn’t fully experience the device — from a feel-in-the-hand perspective — as it was bolted down to its charger with bulky, security hardware . If we had to pick up a Windows Phone 7 device on AT&T, it’d no doubt be the HD7S. Its large display easily fit most of the content on our homepage, and it was a breeze to read text even when fully zoomed out. The keyboard was large and lends itself to ripping off massive quantities of text messages and emails. We even tried the copy/paste feature, which is enabled on the HTC HD7S thanks to the NoDo update. It worked well, although we think Microsoft could have made the interface just a bit more intuitive — but that’s not the HD7S’ fault. Just like the EVO 4G and the T-Mobile HD7, the HD7S sports a metal kickstand, which means you can prop the device up on your desk for watching movies in landscape mode. As with most Windows Phone 7 devices we’ve used, the interface was snappy, and that’s likely due to the 1GHz processor under the hood. We’re definitely looking forward to spending more time with the HD7S when we get a review unit. In the meantime, hit gallery to have a look for yourself.

It looks like the gang over at xda-developers have leaked a build of Microsoft’s Windows Phone NoDo update — better known as the copy and paste update — for the HTC HD7. Forum member football has posted the build, which is in RUU format, for European HD7s only. If you want to try to shoehorn this update onto your T-Mobile HD7, you had better be prepared to roll up those sleeves. Using the GoldCard method, it is possible to load this ROM onto unsupported hardware, what it is not, however, is easy. Regardless, if you’re the adventurous type, and want copy and paste functionality so bad you can taste it, hit up the read link and have a look for yourself… and do be careful! More →

According to information acquired by WinRumors, Verizon Wireless will begin to sell Windows Phone handsets towards the end of March. Citing “people familiar with the company’s plans,” the blog goes on to note that the HTC 7 Trophy — the same CDMA, WP7 handset to be carried by Sprint — could be announced as early as February 28th. The device will have Microsoft’s “NoDo” update (also known as the copy and paste update) and should retail for $199.99 with a signed two-year contract. Any Big Red patrons out there waiting on a Windows Phone set? More →